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Arrow: Star City’s Anti-Vigilante Act Enters A New Phase

SPOILER WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for “Next of Kin,” the latest episode of Arrow.

Star City’s anti-vigilante legislation has reared its ugly head once more. In “Next of Kin,” the latest episode of Arrow, Oliver had to juggle his decision to retire as Green Arrow with the return of the anti-vigilante act. Fortunately, he was able to stall the bill before it passed — but only by turning it over to the public in a citywide vote.

Over the course of the episode, Dig struggled with his decision to become Green Arrow, and that impacted his very first mission as team leader. When he had to make a critical decision, he hesitated, which allowed the villains to ram a truck into a building. Fortunately, there were no causalities, but the incident was enough to shake Star City’s faith in Team Arrow.

As such, the anti-vigilante legislation was brought back to the table. As the council motioned to pass the bill unanimously, Oliver stepped in and took the podium. He addressed the notion that his reliance on vigilantes disrespected the Star City Police Department, pointing out that the SCPD was struggling in light of the recent attacks by Black Siren and needed help and time to recover. Further, the SCPD would be stretched out too thin by focusing their resources on the hunt for these vigilantes as well as on crime in the city.

After making his speech against the bill, Oliver invoked section 9, which means the controversial act will be subject to a popular vote. While section 9 didn’t exactly kill the bill, it did stall it, giving Oliver and Team Arrow some time to regroup and strategize. The bill will undergo a citywide vote later on.

Of course, the move could work against him, and the public could very well pass the bill. However, that is very much down the line, which means this anti-vigilante legislation will likely continue to be a storyline throughout Season 6. With Oliver retired from his role as Green Arrow, though, he’ll be able to redouble his efforts in preventing the bill from being passed.

Starring Stephen Amell as the Emerald Archer, Arrow airs Thursdays at 9pm ET/PT on The CW. The series also stars Emily Bett Rickards, David Ramsey, Willa Holland and more.